Visit of Commissioner Kuneva to the People's
Republic of China: frequently asked questions on product
safety

EU Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva will visit
the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong on 9-13 June 2008. The principal
aim of the visit is to take stock of progress with regard to the commitments
made a year ago during her visit in July 2007 to strengthen EU-China product
safety controls The visit will also provide an opportunity to discuss plans for
future co-operation, in particular, the revision of the current EU-China
Memorandum of Understanding on consumer product safety and the preparation of
the first EU-China-US trilateral summit on product safety in Brussels this
November. She will take this opportunity to express condolences to the Chinese
for the many victims of the recent earthquake. In Beijing, Commissioner Kuneva
will meet Mr Li Changjiang, the Minister responsible for AQSIQ (General
Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine), and Mr Zhou
Bohua, the Minister for Industry and Commerce. The discussion topics include the
results of the EU Report "Evaluation of the safety measures in the toy supply
chain" (see IP/08/879
and MEMO/08/364)
and also the effectiveness of the RAPEX-China alert system for dangerous
products including the quarterly reporting. The Commissioner will participate in
a Round Table with civil society on EU-China relations in the consumer policy
field (with the Chinese Consumer Association, industry representatives,
academics, etc.), and deliver a speech at the University for International
Business and Economics on “Shared Global Responsibilities”. On her
visit to Guangzhou, one of the main toy producing regions, the Commissioner will
visit the local quality control and testing center, where she will discuss
export controls and obtain an overview of the product safety chain in China. In
Hong Kong she will meet local authorities and businesses including the local
"Toys Council".

"The EU cannot and will not compromise on safety. 2007 was marked by a
summer of recalls, that has led to a winter of evaluation and a spring and
summer of change. Trust is the currency of the global market economy. It is the
shared interest of both China and the European Union to work in partnership to
strengthen consumer confidence and to fully exploit the benefits of the EU-China
product safety systems currently in place.

RAPEX and China

According to the 2007 EU RAPEX (Rapid Alert System for non-food consumer
products) report, the People's Republic of China (including Hong Kong) is the
country of origin for more than half (52% / 700 notifications) of notified
products.

The most frequently notified products in 2007 were:

toys (417 notifications, approx. 31%),

motor vehicles (197 notifications, approx. 15%),

electrical appliances (156 notifications, approx. 12%),

lighting equipment (84 notifications, approx. 6%),

cosmetics (81 notifications, approx. 6%).

More than 1 in 3
notified products was either a toy or a childcare article, confirming that child
safety is a top-ranking priority for market surveillance authorities.For
more detailed information on the EU RAPEX system, and the 2007 RAPEX Annual
Report see:

First and foremost, economic operators – namely, manufacturers or their
commercial representatives in the EU and European importers. Of course Member
State authorities carry out sample testing in their own laboratories, and that
is one way for a product to end up on the RAPEX system. Voluntary measures
notified by producers on their own initiative account for an increasing share of
overall RAPEX notifications.

Is the product and toy safety situation in China improving?

The share of notifications on products of Chinese origin submitted through
the RAPEX system in 2007 increased by 3 percentage points compared to 2006 (49%
in 2006, 52% in 2007). However, it does not necessarily mean that there were a
more dangerous Chinese goods on the European market in 2007.

In fact it seems that the knowledge on the origin of products is better since
the share of products of unknown origin notified through RAPEX
significantly decreased in 2007 compared to previous years (20% in 2005, 17% in
2006 and 13% in 2007). Certain products which had been notified in previous
years as being of unknown origin were probably of Chinese origin.

There are positive outcomes emerging from the great efforts being made by the
Chinese and EU authorities to improve the safety of Chinese products reaching
the EU market. For instance, the Chinese authorities investigated 432 RAPEX
notifications since the launch of 'RAPEX-China' application and, where
appropriate, took follow-up measures to stop the trade or have the goods
improved.

What is the 'RAPEX-CHINA' application?

In January 2006, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on general product
safety was signed between the Commission's Health and Consumer Protection
Directorate-General and the Chinese General Administration for Quality
Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ). The MoU establishes a framework
for better communication and co-operation between both regulators and
specifically seeks to support Chinese authorities in their efforts to ensure
product safety, particularly for consumer goods exported to the EU.

One important measure in this context is that RAPEX information on products
of Chinese origin is now made available to AQSIQ through the on-line
'RAPEX-China' application. This allows Chinese authorities to follow up directly
on notifications regarding unsafe products coming from their territory and
identify areas where the safety standards are weaker.

As part of the 2006 Memorandum of Understanding, AQSIQ agreed to provide
every 3 months the Commission with information on the follow up actions carried
out as a result of RAPEX-China information.. The information provided in this
report allows the Commission to monitor and analyse the follow-up market
surveillance activities carried out by the Chinese authorities on their
territory, and allows both parties to identify and address weak points in their
co-operation systems.

In addition to the general framework provided by the Memorandum of
Understanding, a specific Roadmap for safer toys was signed in September 2006.
This agreement aims at ensuring that toys exported from China to the EU are safe
and outlines a strategy for improving the safety of toys manufactured in China.
The Roadmap, supported by both the European and Chinese toy manufacturers'
associations, includes practical measures regarding training and technical
assistance, exchanges of RAPEX information between the EU and the Chinese
authorities, and tracing, feedback and follow-up mechanisms for dangerous
products. It also contains a commitment from the Chinese authorities to
strengthen inspection and supervision of toys exported to Europe.

What concrete measures is China taking?

In response to last year's wide-scale toy recalls, a large number of the
export licensed manufacturers have been audited and forced to improve their
safety control systems. 701 companies lost their export license as a result of
their poor safety standards. AQSIQ continues this strengthened supervision in
2008.

In November 2007 the Commission agreed on a “list of
deliverables” in the field of product safety with AQSIQ, which included,
amongst other things:

Strengthening export safety and quality controls on products from China, in
particular for frequently notified products, such as toys, lights, electric
plugs and extension cords;

The
Joint Statement, issued at the 10th China-EU Summit in Beijing on 28 November
2007, shows the strong emphasis that the EU put on improving product safety. It
also underlines the clear will, on both sides, to continue the existing
constructive relations, to commit to a regular exchange of information, and to
work towards measurable improvements in product safety in order to allow a
prosperous and harmonious trade relationship.

Overall, the Commission feels that there is genuine progress being made in
China in the field of product safety and the Commission will seek to ensure that
this effort is maintained. The full impact of tighter safety measures and
controls should become more apparent with time, so long as product safety is
kept as an uncompromised priority in China.

AQSIQ is also making efforts to create a national rapid alert system,
interlinked with the RAPEX-China system, so as to allow a quicker and more
effective response to dangerous product notifications. Where possible, the
Commission is providing technical support to the Chinese authorities in the
establishment of this system.

What kind of support is the EU providing to China?

The EU has kept in close contact with the Chinese authorities to provide any
support possible when it comes to improving product safety. A high level
EU-China meeting ("EU-China High-Level Economic and Trade Mechanism") took place
in Beijing at the end of April where product safety was again a major topic for
discussion. The Commission continues to encourage the participation of Chinese
experts in traineeship programmes, both in the Commission and in Member States.
Education on European product safety rules and their implementation is an
effective way of promoting product safety and one that is likely to yield the
most long-lasting results.

The EU together with the US will organise further training courses in China
in September relating to the safety requirements for textiles, selected
electrical products and toys. The EU-China Trade Project carries out a study on
the product safety control and tracing mechanisms in place in China. The
objective is also to extend the MoU between the Commission and AQSIQ before the
end of 2008 and to include ways to further strengthen the cooperation mechanism
between both sides, based on the experiences over the last three years. On top
of this, in November 2008, the Commission will organise the International
Product Safety Week in Brussels with a series of events and seminars for
stakeholders and product safety specialists. One of the highlights of this week
will be the first EU-US-China trilateral summit on product safety, will be held
in Brussels to boost trilateral co-operation in this field.